proposition which brought in $50 million and preserve essential services in our neighborhoods. she has dedicated years to improving the community and is a fighter for affordable family housing. she is not only empowering students at hillcrest but building a new generation of parent leaders, especially among the latino mothers in district 11. she is helping parents start their own small businesses providing healthy food to school communities. these are often women who are immigrants and of providing new models for employment and economic development for our communities is one of the things she is involved in here. she knows that economic opportunities for families are as important as quality education and can improve educational outcomes for children and their families. as a parent, leader, and

advocate, she embodies the themes of this year's women's history month and i am blessed to present her with his honor. i just want to say that she has a great deal of work she does and the neighborhoods around the district 11 and district 9. she has great charisma and draws in a lot of great families doing wonderful work in our neighborhoods. thank you for your service and it's an honor for me to honor you today. [applause] >> thank you. [applause] i hate to give you my back, but i want to applaud all of you, all of the women and parents who are struggling to give great education even though we face of these budget cuts and wondering how we are going to do it, but we are here to fight for the

education of our children. they need to be educated so they can have the tools to be great business people and wonderful citizens. i believe still the united states windows of opportunities and let's keep fighting for the rights, the education and jobs. we can do it. i know we all have the power and hurray for the women and i work with wonderful women who are my mentors who keep helping me to help others. thank you for this recognition and i want to celebrate all of you women because you put a lot of work for all you do and celebrate you. thank you. [applause]

president chiu: congratulations. our next commendation is a supervisor david campos. supervisor campos: thank you very much, mr. president. let me begin by thanking the commission on the status of women for this event and all the work they do. when you look at the names in the background of all the women being honored today, it is a truly incredible to see the talent and commitment and dedication and the caliber of the women doing such amazing things here in the city and county of san francisco.

it is an honor to be a part of that and to be a part of that celebration. it is truly an honor to honor someone who is a very special in our community who quite frankly does not get enough credit and i don't know that i have the words to fully explain how much she means to our community, so i would like to ask her to come up. [applause] i think the best testament is the presence of all the people in this room who are here to honor you. i would like to ask those of you from the community, from the mission, to honor.

i know we have many families and children and members of the community who are here because they want to be here for you. thank you very much. you can sit down. [applause] she is the executive director of the mission education project, a nonprofit agency on 24th street that provides at rescues and their families and equal opportunity to access culturally sensitive and quality educational experience. she has been working in the field of education for more than 30 years and she has established herself as an institution in that mission. it is going to be hard for you to find a child or family who doesn't know about what she does and who has not been impacted by the work she has been doing for the last 30 years.

in that time, you have literally save the lives of so many young people who have been looking for something positive to do with their lives, who have been looking for hope and opportunities and you have always provided that opportunity and hope. you are truly an institution who set an example for all of us in the mission and i cannot tell you how many times i've spoken to families to have personally told me what their program means to them. what it means not only in the education of their children but what it means in terms of maintaining the family in the city in san francisco and in the mission in particular. over the years, she's been involved in so many things. we know about her work in education but i want to talk about violence prevention.

not only does for program provide after-school programs for these families but it is remarkable to see the way she talks to young people and the way she can get a young person to take responsibility and look at their own lives. i have seen it with my own eyes how you have actually pointed young people in the right direction and a because of your words and your example have really changed their lives. it is always remarkable to see a young man who perhaps one day was getting in trouble and doing some things he wasn't supposed to be doing and you run into that young man and see them helping you clean or work on the garden and cleaning the street, that is the power of what you do and so it is truly an honor for

me to recognize you on behalf of the entire community and behalf of all of district 9. thank you. [applause] >> thank you. i'm very honored and pleased to be recognized by you and the status of women for all i have done and worked with you and the entire community. i would like to tell you who is here with me. my family is here, my friends are here, my little children and our after-school programs are here, the parents are here. it's a great honor to see that group of people coming to the board of supervisors. some of them have not been here before. they have an opportunity to see and hear how it functions.

i am pleased and honored. i did not expect this and again, i need to thank the board of supervisors and it is in the bottom of my heart. you are the one who gave us some of our funding. maybe i should not have said that but you play a role in the mission education project in the mission district by funding us because without the funds we receive from you and other donations throughout the city, we would not be able to function. we are working with kids who are way below grade level. all of you know the standard of education today. most of our kids are non-english speaking so it is very difficult for them to do the homework because some of the parents cannot help them at home because they cannot speak english.

i want to thank the supervisor campos for the support he has given us and also the rest of the board. thank you. [applause] [applause] president chiu: it is my honor to make the next presentation but before i do that, i just

want to take a moment to observe the fact that in my time in office, this is the most crowded gathering i've seen to celebrate community heroes. i know so many of you who are not getting awards today you have done historic and heroic things and i want to thank you for that. we're helping to recognize our cities super heroes. the next on marie falls into that category. one definition of a super hero is an individual you may not recognize or see as a hero who toils very hard every day who may be mild mannered or extremely diligent who may have aspects of her demeanor that appeared gentle but if i could please asked [reading name] to come to the podium. i am about to expose a super

heroine. i met her years ago when the two of us served on the board for chinese for affirmative action. when our cities and what our country's leading civil rights organizations. then i learned that she not all helped to found the organization, but has served on the boards of the aclu, the architectural heritage foundation, the ywca, the or original san francisco school district desegregation committee and many other organizations. but that is just our community service. i then learned in the 1970's she had at the asian american studies department at uc- berkeley. she got asian-american studies approved for a bachelor's degree and got japanese courses approved for language of requirements and got an approved a u.s. history requirement at a

time when the chancellor of that university decided to do away with asian-american studies programs. then she served the city and county of san francisco as the assistant to the chief administrative officer and helped coordinate the mosconi center and was the liaison to the bay view community on the development of a sewage treatment in that area and made recommendations on every major controversial development before the planning commission at that time. but i happen to think none of those are her most impressive accomplishments. she was the first person of color to serve as san francisco's registrar of voters and help to advocate with the election administrators to support the continuance of the extension of the voting rights bill with regard to language requirements. she was invited to visit with

congress and provide testimony to protect the record local aspect of assuring all of our communities are filled. so someone you may pass on the street, i just want to think you not just on behalf of the district and the asian-american community but the san francisco community for being a true super heroine. thank you very much. [applause] >> thank you, david. that reminds me how old i am now. [laughter] i'm going to be brief because i know we have many women to be honored and i am humbled to be part of this amazing group of women who have done so much for our communities. i want to congratulate all of you. i am grateful for the years of service i was able to give to

the city and county of san francisco and i look forward to much more progress as we continue as leaders here. thank you. [applause] [applause] supervisor chu: today, my

honoree, she could not be here today. she was on a meeting in europe, but we are honored to have the -- honor to have her mother here to receive the honor on her behalf. the going to ask you to come up to the podium. [applause] when thinking of this year's theme, women's education, women's economic strength and empowerment, i cannot think of a more fitting honor read and melissa. she's about economic strength and women's empowerment. i first learned of her past accomplishments at an annual dinner. she's a managing partner and one of the three original co- founders along with two other women of asia alternatives, and

asian private equity fund to funds providing investment opportunities in asia. despite a chorus of knows, she has grown asia alternative since 2006 to be an organization with over $2 billion in assets under management with investments across asia. japan, southeast asia, australia and japan. you will recognize some of the large investors, including calpers, ontario municipal retirement fund, pennsylvania state employees retirement fund and many others. she sits on an number of cities service boards and the foundation that it works on improving the lives of orphans and china. she is on the advisory board for room to read and she, our message, her accomplishments are an inspiration to all of the

women who want to be numbers women and to want to take a chance and accept risks and for all of the women who know it's ok to pay the past that has not been paid yet. she is real proof the glass ceiling can really be broken. that she cannot be here today, i would like to thank her for all of her accomplishments and thank you for being here to accept her award. thank you. [applause] >> on behalf of melissa, out we send our deepest condolences she could not be here in person but she is honored and remains deeply committed to san francisco personally and professionally. thank you. [applause]

president chiu: our next presentation will be made by supervisor cohen. supervisor cohen: thank you, mr. president. good afternoon and thank you for joining us today. i would like to take a moment to a knowledge and thank the commission on the status of women, the commissioners as well as the staff. it is amazing what you ladies do. not only do you celebrate women on an annual basis, but you also provide thoughtful data to help us shape policies.

not just on politics, but on the important data points. also, it is amazing what you are able to do on an annual basis considering how underfunded you are. without further ado, i would like to a knowledge one woman that has been an outstanding leader in the southeast part of san francisco. she has made the bay view community her home since 1961. she has been a role model for me, and inspiration for most. , i would like to introduce you to doris vincent. [applause] as a single mother, she purchased her first home in the bay view neighborhood in 1961 and has been a tireless advocate and community member since. her list of community and educational acts is extensive.

most recently, she served as the trusty at the providence baptist church and assisted with the churches homeless service. she has served on a number of community boards and advisory groups, which include the bayview hunters point project area committee, hunters point shipyard citizens advisory committee, ucsf community advisory committee, and the bayview opera house. before she accepted his award, she was upstairs in another committee meeting. this woman is tireless. i also have another story for you. yesterday, i was at a press event. this woman saw that the hem in my dress had fallen. she pulled me aside, without a needle and a thread -- whipped out a needle and a thread. you talk about a woman who has got your back. she stood behind me and sewed up my hem.

the mayor was to my left and the redevelopment agency to my right. we were welcoming a new business on third street. i use that as an example to illustrate her commitment to being a mother, to being a community leader. this woman is amazing. this paper is simply a small token of our appreciation and our gratitude. on behalf of the community, thank you. [applause] >> i want to thank my supervisor, malia cohen, and all of the other supervisors sitting in this chamber. when you are 79 years old, the little stuff that you see on the paper does not really spell out what your life ought to be about. each day, that is the way i was raised, you should be about doing something for your church,

your family, your community. if you have 79 years in there and this is all you can come up with, you have not done very much. [laughter] however, i love my san francisco, i loved bayview hunters point. the fact that i am among these women is astounding. the way i view things, each one of us have a responsibility to our neighborhoods and to our city. it takes all of us to make our neighborhoods work, to make our cities work. i hope you will understand that we still need you to come to the meetings, give us the input, now there will no longer have redevelopment, we are creating a whole new system and we need you

there in order for us to go forward and continue to be a marvelous city. having travelled to other places, i was thinking this morning, san francisco is my first choice. if i was living outside of the country, florence, italy, would be my special choice. if i was living in the southern parts, where i was born and raised, i would say miami, fla., would be my choice. but taken from all those troubles, coming back to san francisco, being on different cac groups and being able to cooperate some of the things you learned in your travels, i find that that just helps to create a better situation for san francisco. thank you for this.

i humbly accept it. i do not think i deserved it, but i will accept it. thank you very much. [applause] [applause] president chiu: our next presentation will be provided by it supervisor elsbernd. supervisor elsbernd: i would like to ask my honoree, ms. olivia scanlon, to come to the podium.

for those of you who do not know her, she has been my legislative aide for the last 7.5 years. we first met nearly 10 years ago when we first started working together here at city hall. maybe i should start with this -- a few weeks ago, we all collectively sat together and chose somebody to honor for black history month. she escorted the honoree to the chambers and said to him, isn't this wonderful? it is not your funeral but people are wrong to say nice things about you. well, bolivia, is not your future -- it -- well, olivia, it is not your funeral, but people are going to say nice things about you. i want to honor a person who i believe has done more for the district than anybody else i know.

hands down, woman or man, there is no one who has done as much for the people of district 7 then you. i cannot tell you how absolutely grateful i am for all of the great work you have done for me. how much commitment you have shown to all of the residents of district 7, whether it was with a smile or a smirk, you were always right there, doing everything you possibly could for them. and much, much more beyond your work in this building. what is most impressive to me, and i know to a lot of your friends and family who are here, is the role you play at home as a mother and a spouse. undoubtedly, for me, you have been a great inspiration as a parent and a role model. i know you play that role for many other people. thank you for everything you have done a.

[applause] and i surprised her with this. she had no idea this morning that she was the district's seven honoree. if i gave her two or three weeks to prepare these remarks, i would undoubtedly be thoroughly embarrassed with personal stories. you only have a couple of minutes, say what you want to say. this is your chance to get me. [laughter] >> i am in shock that sean did this. it means a lot to me because he is not only my boss, but he is my fifth -- he is like family to me. when you come from another country, your friends are your family to you in. it is not just from my work, it is also personal.

i am very honored and privileged to have the opportunity to work with, in my opinion, one of the best supervisors that the city will ever see. i want to thank my friends and my family for totally taking me off guard. thank you very much and i hope you will see plenty more of supervisor elsbernd for years to come. [applause] president chiu: congratulations. next in the off of it is letter f, which means supervisor farrell.